


Android Investigations

by azurecorvus



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Action & Romance, Action/Adventure, Canon-Typical Violence, Detroit: Become Human Spoilers, Drama, Drama & Romance, Eventual Romance, Explicit Language, Graphic Description, M/M, Murder Mystery, Post-Canon, Reader-Insert, Science Fiction, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Slow Romance, Spoilers, detective!reader, male reader - Freeform, male!reader
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-17
Updated: 2018-08-29
Packaged: 2019-06-11 15:04:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,565
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15318105
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/azurecorvus/pseuds/azurecorvus
Summary: Achieving your dream of making detective, as you would soon discover, would be the easiest point in your law enforcement career. Upon your promotion you are immediately transferred to the Detroit City Police Department to join a new investigations unit that was implemented to deal with the increase of crimes against androids, despite the efforts made with the recent android revolution.Upon your arrival, you find that your new unit was previously just a two man crew, led by the rather ornery Lieutenant Hank Anderson and a prototype android that was originally intended to apprehend deviant androids that goes by the name of Connor.Life is about to get very interesting.(Takes place after all good endings.)





	1. Prologue and Introductions

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first time posting a fic.  
> Also, I have the worst grammar and no one to beta so you have been warned.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You were recently promoted to detective at your department when your captain informs you that you are being transferred to the Detroit Police Department to help with the effects of the android rebellion.
> 
> When you arrive and meet with the Captain, he gives you quick briefing on your newly assigned post and introduces to your commanding officer, Lieutenant Hank Anderson, and his partner that happens to be an android by the name of Connor.
> 
> After introductions are made and you learn more about the android detective, you are assigned your first case within the Android Investigations Unit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edit 8/16/2018: SO! I decided to do a bit of consolidating since the first few chapters were short enough to combine into one chapter. There is also a new chapter, so sorry about the change. Kind of the downside of adding chapters as I finish them. But hopefully this helps the overall flow of the story.
> 
> Thanks again to everyone that has given kudos and commented, I really appreciate it all and I hope you all continue to enjoy this fic!

It was suppose to be an exciting day for you. Having successfully passed the detective exams, you were finally promoted to detective at your home department. Your colleagues were congratulating you when the Captain, Howard Thompson, called for you.

Captain Thompson was a middle-aged man, probably if not already in his fifties, creases in his face being fairly prominent. His professionally clipped hair maintaining its dark color at the crown but the sides steadily greying over the years. He had a tough exterior and even played at being a hardballer, but everyone that had served under him for more than a year knew that deep down, he cared deeply for his officers.

“Yes, sir?” you began tentatively. Uncertain if the Captain simply wanted to congratulate you personally in private or there was something else he wanted to discuss.

“Before I get into this, I just want to say congratulations. I know how much you wanted this and how hard you worked for it. Hell, I wouldn't usually say this, but I'm proud of you, kid.”

Typical Captain Thompson. You didn't miss that first part though and you fought a frown as you nodded your thanks to the Captain. So there was something to discuss.

“Unfortunately, I have some news that may bring this down for you.”

He folded his arms as he gave a disdainful glare at a file on his desk.

Uh-oh. He couldn't even make eye contact with you, that was a sure sign that even he didn't like what he was about to say.

“You've been reassigned to a different station.” Just coming right out with it, then. “You'll be starting your new career with the Detroit City Police Department.”

You let the frown show now, brow furrowed in confusion.

“I don't understand. Why am I being transferred?”

“It's not that we don't want you here, completely the opposite, but with the recent events of the past month, they need more man power to handle it.”

“As if we don't have our own shit happening here?” you snorted.

Truth was, even with the events that happened in Detroit and at CyberLife, tensions between humans and androids were still high. Revolutions weren't something that were exactly won over night afterall.

“I know, I know. But seeing how Detroit is being labeled as ground zero for all this bullshit they have the most need right now.” He was looking you straight in the eye now. “I only approved this because I know for a fact your skills and expertise surpass anyone else at this station and I'd be remiss if I didn't assign you a task that would potentially grow your career exponentially right out the gate. Like I may have said, I'm proud of you.”

Well damn if that didn't do it. You clenched your jaw a bit.

“I understand, sir. Thank you. For everything.”

The two of you exchanged a firm handshake as he also gave you a fatherly pat on the shoulder accompanied with a rare smile.

 

* * *

 

Within the next week, all the necessary files had been properly filled and sent. You had already spoken briefly over the phone with the Captain of the DPD about your start date, he had also sent along some general files and reports pertaining to what had happened in the city over the past month to get you up to speed before you began work.

Eventually the day had arrived. Upon entering the station, you made a cursory glance of the area. It didn't appear to be an unusually busy morning, which could be a good thing for you. It would mean you could possibly spend more time getting to know your fellow officers better before trying to figure them out on the field. Although, that was also just as beneficial; some people tend to show their true colors more clearly in the heat of the moment.

You made your way to the Captain's office, Jeffery Fowler, you recalled. You walked up undeterred, everyone absorbed in their work. You stopped in the door way and cleared your throat.

“Uh, Captain Fowler?”

“Ah, you're here, come in.” Fowler motioned for you to enter and as you did, you shut the door behind you.

He stood up from his desk, extending a hand over and the two of you shook hands as Fowler addressed you a bit more formally before beginning a sort of casual briefing.

“As you know with our current situation, crimes against androids has increased. Despite what the revolution has aimed for, hostilities continue if not escalated.”

He gestured for you to take a seat and you obliged. You only nodded in response, allowing Fowler to continue.

“To try and compensate we had to create an Android Investigations Unit.” Fowler made a slight scoffing sound. It was neutral in nature but with a slight annoyance to it. Either because he thought it pointless or because he thought it not enough, you couldn't be sure. “That's where I'm assigning you.”

“Android Investigations?” you repeated. The name was pretty self explanatory but you were curious what it exactly entailed.

“It's going to be some time before City Hall works out all the logistics for android rights and god knows when D.C. will have anything in writing. Until then, we have to look into all crimes, especially acts of violence, against androids.” Fowler passed a folder over to containing details of your newly assigned post.

“Can't believe the FBI is too busy to form their own unit.” You grumbled as you thumbed idly through the folder just for something to do but immediately looked back to Fowler. “Not that I don't appreciate the opportunity to, um, work with...”

“Right? The one time I'd like for them to take a case off my hands and they can't be bothered.” He rolled his eyes as he lifted his mug, taking a short sip before continuing. “At the very least, let's see if we can't show them up.”

“Well, I'll certainly give it my best.”

“That being said, we only have so many people we can assign to this sort of work. You're officially the team's third member. You will be reporting to Lieutenant Anderson, he's heading the unit.”

It was at this moment Fowler took a moment to look out into the bullpen, as if in hopes that just speaking the name would summon the mentioned lieutenant. You followed his gaze and noticed an older man walking up to the office followed closely behind a younger looking man you estimated to possibly be close to your own age. In no time the two had entered the office, the younger man shutting the door behind them.

“Impeccable timing, Hank.” said Fowler with a terse grin, standing again as you followed suit.

“Jefferey.” greeted the older man, Hank, who had now turned his attention to you. “This the new kid?”

Fowler nodded and introduced you to the two, Hank as already mentioned and the young man, Connor.

You shook hands with Hank and then with Connor. It was at that moment that you noticed the LED glowing on his right temple.

A slight “Oh” escaped you before you could suppress it.

“Connor was sent to us about a month back by CyberLife themselves as a sort of pilot program.” stated Fowler. “He's been kept on in light of recent events. They figure keeping an android on board when dealing with crimes against androids would be beneficial.”

“It's not going to be a problem, is it?” Hank was now eyeing you very closely.

“No, I just, I honestly wasn't expecting... this.” you stuttered, very aware now that you weren't making the best impression in this moment.

You rarely worked with androids yourself at your precinct outside of reception and clerical tasks. Well, up until recently that is. The department was devoid of androids after the events following the revolution. And you had never purchased an android yourself either. The thought of it had bothered you and even if it didn't, they were well out of your price range anyway.

This would be your first time actively working with an android for an extended and an indefinite amount of time.

Looking back to Connor, you catch a slight smile on his face.

“That is quite alright, Detective. It's nice to meet you and I look forward to working with you.”

“I, uh, likewise.” The tactfulness that he displayed surprised you a bit and you could help but berate yourself for not being more professional in the moment.

“Right, you can all continue to getting to know each other at your own desks.” Fowler spoke up, as he turned his chair away from you all and began to turn his attention to his terminal. “Your team will be able to help you find yours and Gabrielle should have your stuff there.”

“Afternoon, captain.” you said as you exited his office following your new team.

 

* * *

 

Hank made his way straight to his desk and Connor gestured to your desk which was just across from Hank's and Connor's. Your desks were sort of clustered together in a semi-secluded corner of the department. Your name plate already affixed to the desk along with a few files and tablet placed on top, thanks to Gabrielle no doubt. A deep exhale escaped your nostrils as you unceremoniously dropped the A.I.U. file on top and plopped down in your new chair. You smirked to yourself as now you had a moment to appreciate the initials of your new unit. Intentional or not, it was sort of funny.

You glanced over to Hank who was looking grimly at his terminal. You mused that perhaps grim just happened to be his resting facial expression.

“Nice corner office you folks have here.” you idly stated.

Hank gave a snort. “I would have preferred to have kept our old seating arrangement but Jeffery thought with our extended workload, we could use a bit more privacy.”

You gave a quick glance over your shoulder. While the area was secluded to an extent, it was still an open area of the department. Although it was a bit quieter so it did seem to have that going for it.

“Considerate.” you murmured as you turned to your own terminal. As you did, you caught eye contact with Connor.

“You recently were promoted to detective, correct?” piped up Connor, seeming to take this moment to speak with you as well.

“Uh, yeah that's right.” you answered.

“Connor.” Hank's tone was that of a parent when reprimanding a child. “What'd I say about...” He paused and made a slight waving gesture. “...scanning people like that?”

You looked between, a brow raised.

“Sorry, Lieutenant. Force of habit.” said Connor sheepishly.

“What sort of prototype are you suppose to be anyway?” You decided to turn the questioning around and use the time to learn more about your android partner.

“I was originally designed to assist in investigations ranging from active crime scene analysis, interrogations, negotiations, and so forth.”

Now both eyebrows raised. “That so?”

“Yes.”

“And you've been here a month now?”

Connor nodded slightly. “That is correct. I was...” He paused and you could tell he was mulling over what he wanted to say next, which perplexed you. It wasn't something you expected an android to do when speaking. “I was also designed to track down and apprehend deviant androids.”

Well that was unexpected.

“You were suppose to hunt down other androids?”

Connor nodded again, albeit this time you could read a feeling of guilt across his features.

Hank cleared his throat. “You probably have heard reports of androids malfunctioning or some shit up until recently. Obviously CyberLife wanted to protect their precious reputation and with cases of androids becoming what they called deviant increasing, they wanted to get a handle on it as quickly as possible. So their solution was to make some kind of fucking deviant hunter and that's how Connor got here.”

“I see.” You said slowly, sitting back in your chair and crossing your arms. “They played it off like it was just some bug in the programming.” You chewed your bottom lip in thought for a brief moment. “But that's not what was going really happening, was it?”

“What we know about what was being labeled as deviancy is that androids are able to develop independent thoughts, emotions, et cetera. Essentially the sort of thoughts and actions recognized in humans.” explained Connor.

“Right, right.” You turned all the information over in your mind. “And now people have more reasons to lash out at androids, hence why we're here.”

“Exactly.” said Hank as he picked up his tablet and began scrolling through it. Apparently he was finished with the conversation.

“So how does it feel to suddenly go from hunting androids to... assisting androids?” You posed to Connor.

“Well, as I am deviant myself, it's a much preferable position to be in.” he stated.

That certainly wasn't the sort of response you were expecting.

“Hold up, the deviant hunter went deviant?” You let out a wry chuckle. “Talk about irony.”

That definitely explained his actions that you had caught on from earlier.

“I hope that doesn't effect your opinion of me, Detective.”

“I mean, I never really interacted much with androids to begin with, outside of, you know, shopping or whatever.” You began to nervously rub the back of neck. “I don't think it will.”

“It better not.” interjected Hank.

You caught him giving you an intense look over his tablet. So he hadn't completely shut out from the conversation.

“It won't.” you amended, berating yourself again for continuing to make a less than stellar first impression.

“Lieutenant, I just received a message from the Captain.” Connor now turned to Hank. You were silently thankful for the complete change of topic and realized how eager you were to really get started on a case. “There was just a report of an android that was found dumped by the rail yard. They appear to have been heavily damaged and may or may not be in operational condition.”

“Well, looks like we'll be breaking you in right away, Detective.” Hank said as he stood from his desk.

You followed suit, tailing behind him and Connor to the parking garage.


	2. The Rail Yard

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Your first day on the A.I.U. and you already have a crime scene to investigate. You continue to attempt making a better impression on Hank while being somewhat unable to curb your curiosity concerning your android partner.
> 
> Back at the station, you make the acquaintance of another resident detective.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I always feel like these are longer until I post them and then it's like, wow that's not very many words at all. OH WELL.

As with most rail yards, the Conrail Livernois yard was a desolate landscape of iron and steel. Tracks snaking across the ground and intersecting in an intricate highway as thousands of rail cars stood upon them, stretching across for unknown miles and looming over. The snow created a stark contrast with the dark steel and the winter air adding a physical sense of cold to the abstract one given off by the industrial atmosphere.

The three of you arrived on the scene well under thirty minutes. The ride over itself was interesting to say the least, Hank blasting heavy metal along the whole way. You didn't mind as you did enjoy the more classic metal bands of the 90's and early 2000's. You originally offered to drive yourself over but realizing your own vehicle was on the complete opposite side of the parking garage, Hank just grumbled for you to hop into his.

Hank parked as far in as he was allowed and the three of you were met with an officer.

“Morning, Lieutenant.” greeted the officer.

“Phillip.” nodded Hank.

It was another five minutes to reach the crime scene. Having to navigate the the rows of train cars, careful not to get a foot caught on a rail or slip on any patches of ice.

“Surprised to see you up so early, Hank.” greeted an older gentleman carrying a tablet.

“And a fucking good morning to you too, Ben.” The other man let out a laugh and the two began to discuss the details of the scene.

The scene was gruesome, as bad as any murder scene could be. There was the mangled form of an android, a male model of some kind, bits of the outer skin missing in chunks revealing cracked plactic, blue blood caked in damaged areas and staining bits of his clothing. You noted that the android was wearing regular clothing, nothing else indicating his status as an android at all.

Connor instantly went to work, carefully kneeling over the figure and thoroughly looking it over. You turn to look towards Hank and saw he was still speaking with Ben, obviously getting a briefing on what his team had already uncovered before your arrival. Seeing as everyone else was getting to work, you decided to start silently canvassing the area.

You slowly walked the grounds, carefully scanning best you could in the dirtied snow, some parts of which had begun to turn to slush. You noted the illuminated, numbered evidence markers placed on the scene by the CSI unit, marking notable evidence, small areas roped off by string probably to preserve any impression evidence. What you could see were basic impressions, foot prints and drag marks, leading up to and away from the scene. All together it created a twisted road map complete with notable landmarks.

“Detective?” You turned at the sound of Connor's voice. “Could you come over here a minute?”

You walked over and Connor gestured to the android.

“My analysis has informed me that this android was an AP700 model. From what I was able to reconstruct of the scene he was dumped here very early this morning.”

“How-- Your analysis?” You interrupted.

“Yes, I told you I am able to provide real time analysis in the field.” answered Connor.

“Oh, right right, sorry.” You said, trying not to inquire more about how exactly Connor's field capabilities worked and sticking to the task at hand. “Alright, anything else?”

Connor nodded. “His injuries indicate severe blunt force was used, specifically that of a steel bat.” He pointed to a few areas and you nodded, not really seeing how he could determine that but you wanted to show you were following along. “Unfortunately the brunt of the assault was directed towards his head, this is the cause of death and it destroyed any way we could have had at rebooting and questioning him personally.”

You blinked. “We could do that?”

“Yes. Although depending on the extent of the damage, further repairs would have to be made before hand, otherwise we would only have a limited amount of time, the end of which he would shutdown again, perhaps even permanently.”

“Oh, I see.” you shifted uncomfortably. “But that's not possible with... this?”

“Correct. The amount of damaged sustained from what I can see until further examination is possible is that the vital components were most likely destroyed and thus unsalvageable. Even if that isn't the case, the amount of damage done would have most likely corrupted any relevant data.”

“Well shit.” you muttered.

“It would be safe to surmise that the suspect holds a high degree of animosity towards androids, as indicated by the severity of the damage.” Connor stood up now, looking at you directly. “They most likely did not have know this android personally but it is obvious that this was an impassioned attack.”

“I'll agree to that.” you said looking down at the sickening, mangled form and then looked up again at your surroundings. “I guess that just leaves us to look into any and all security footage and questioning employees.”

“That would be the best next course of action.” agreed Connor.

“Right, guess we should report in with Lieutenant Anderson then.”

“After you, Detective.”

The two of you covered the short distance to where Hank was still speaking with Ben. Connor relayed the information he had gleaned from the body. You then spent the rest of the morning interviewing the yard workers while Connor collected security footage to be reviewed back at the station.

 

* * *

 

The entirety of the morning was spent at the rail yard collecting every bit of evidence that could be found. Eventually what was collected was sent to the lab for processing; the victim's body was transported via a police van to be thoroughly inspected. By afternoon the scene was completely wrapped up.

Before returning to the station, Hank insisted stopping at food stand, The Chicken Feed, for lunch. Standing at a nearby table, Hank and you silently began to eat your respected lunches as Connor stood by. You munched on some fries when some movement caught your eye. Connor was idly rolling a coin over his knuckles and you cocked an eyebrow in interest.

“I wouldn't have picked you for someone to be into coin tricks.” you motioned to the action. Connor looked up, momentarily ceasing the flourishes, a slight tilt of his head.

“I use it as a means of calibration.” He explained.

“Is that why you do it?” interrupted Hank, looking up from his meal.

“You didn't even know that?” you directed bewildered look towards him.

“Honestly never asked.”

“If we're on the topic of questions, how come you don't have any of those... typical android markings, uh, LED aside?” you asked.

“I did but after the demonstration at Hart Plaza and my new role within the DPD, Hank thought it would be more appropriate for me “ditch the asshole uniform”, as he put it.”

“Well it was an asshole uniform. Besides, it's not like the Android's Act is really in effect anymore.” Hank said with a shrug as he took a sip from his drink.

“Fair enough.” You bit into your own burger and mulled things over. You wanted to ask more but thought perhaps that might be pushing boundaries. At least for now.

 

* * *

 

The meal concluded rather silently and eventually the three of you returned to the station. You returned to your desk and started up your terminal to begin filling out your portion of the report. Connor was also at his desk but Hank detoured to the breakroom for the time being.

Upon finishing your report, you noted that information concerning the evidence collected was awaiting for your review in your inbox. You thought to open it but you began to feel the 3 o'clock slump creeping in so instead decided you would pay the breakroom a visit. You looked up to see that Hank had returned at some point and Connor was still plugging away at his own terminal. Not wanting to interrupt either (though you doubted you could deter Connor from his task regardless), you rose silently from your desk and made your way.

The breakroom was nothing special, in fact it was down right average, nothing fancy or incredibly high tech about it. You scanned the counter tops and noted the coffee maker. Walking over, you carefully touched the steel carafe: stone cold. Checking the cabinets, you were able to find everything you needed to brew a fresh pot. Secretly thankful for something mundane to do in the middle of the day, you leaned against the counter top, arms folded as you thought about nothing.

“So, you're the new kid, huh?” a voice startled you out of your space out time.

You looked to see a scruffier looking man, possibly older than you, no uniform but you caught the glimpse of a badge. You noted a scar across the bridge of his nose and you did not miss the slight sneer on his face as he eyed you over.

“Uh, yeah, I suppose so.” you answered, trying to get a read of the man as you introduced yourself, the two of you did not exchange a handshake, both opting to stand your respective ground.

“Detective Gavin Reed.” You watched him walk further in and lean up on a table. “And you got assigned to the idiot brigade, that right?”

“I don't know about that.” you muttered, turning to check the status of the coffee as he scoffed.

“Android Investigations.” he stated dramatically. “A few walking computers put on a show and suddenly their in consideration for protective rights and they get a whole team dedicated to them. Well, if an alcoholic and a plastic prick can be considered a team.”

Alright, you decidedly did not like this guy.

A beep from behind you alerted you that the coffee had finished. Thankful for a reason to turn your attention away from the detective, you busied yourself with prepping your coffee to your liking.

“It's all a lost cause, if you ask me.” he went on.

“Afternoon, Detective.” you said curtly as you exited the breakroom with your coffee, making it very clear you were done with the conversation and the detective.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I could totally see Hank buying Connor some new clothes while trying to act cool about it.


	3. Questions Arise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Despite your brief encounter with Connor, you find yourself unable to ignore the white rabbit of the philosophy of AI and other thoughts surrounding androids. So long as it doesn't interfere with the case, you should be fine, right?
> 
> Your team proceeds with the investigation of the rail yard murder only to have more problems and questions arise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the bit of a delay, I'm in the middle of looking for a new job and trying to keep up with other work.
> 
> I also wanted to really get the whole crime scene and investigation stuff done right and have been doing a bit of research on it. As well as reading up on AI stuffs because I want to be able to really delve into the philosophy of it all for future chapters so! Lots of reading happening.
> 
> I tried to proof read this one as best I could but if you spot weird errors, feel free to let me know so I can amend them.

Your small rental home was dark and quiet, the light from a streetlamp shown through the thin curtains of your bedroom. You made a mental note to order some blackout curtains in the morning. Lying still on your back, staring up at the beam of light that managed to illuminate a portion of the ceiling, you reflected over the events of the day. It was certainly more eventful than you expected your first day at the DPD. The most unexpected of which was the android detective on your team. You wondered briefly what CyberLife had originally intended to achieve with the prototype. The idea itself made a bit of sense, you supposed. Having something like a mobile, local database and small analysis lab on scene at all times that could also run various scenarios and reconstructions in real time, thus reducing the amount of time spent on all the manual processes and chances of human error. Granted, AI has only ever been as good as the programmer, so could such a thing be truly infallible?

You also suspected it was an attempt to get more government funding for the multi-trillion dollar company. However, with the events of the android revolution, production of androids had been temporarily suspended. Many androids that were employed within government departments had either left their positions of their own will or if they had not become deviant, kept on in a limited capacity. That coupled with the talks in Washington concerning androids, you wondered what sort of frenzy was happening behind the scenes at the major corporation.

Which brought your thoughts back to Connor. It was mentioned that he was being kept on the force to help handle crimes involving androids but you sincerely doubted CyberLife had so keenly embraced the idea of loosing such an advanced prototype at such a crucial time for the company. But even so, he had become deviant himself and regardless of what CyberLife wanted or not, he most likely would not have gone back to his creators.

Your thoughts drifted further, wondering what exactly “becoming deviant” meant in relation to androids. The bit of reading you did on the topic before bed explained it was a term used for androids that “broke away from their programming,” which was often explained as a malfunction or a glitch, a syntax error or whatever. But the androids had said themselves it was really them becoming truly aware of themselves, realizing that they are, in fact, alive. In all honesty, you still weren't sure where you stood on the topic. What was it that made something alive?

You rubbed your face, it was all so very complex and your mind was branching off in several trains of thought around it, leaving you with no real cohesive way to process it. It wasn't even what you should be focusing on, you had a case to solve. Regardless that the victim was an android, as far as the department was concerned, a murder had still taken place and it was your job, your duty, to find the murderer and ensure that they saw justice and prevented a repeat offense.

Turning to your side to face away from the glowing window, you made a better attempt for sleep.

 

* * *

 

It was roughly 8 o'clock when you arrived at the department, thermos in hand as you drudged your way to your desk. Despite your best efforts, your sleep was not peaceful and you felt like your brain continued on the convoluted thoughts you held before sleep. You sat with a sigh as you powered on your terminal.

“Good morning, Detective.” came Connor's voice across from you, startling you slightly.

“Shi-- Uh, good morning, Connor.” you replied as you looked over to see he was at his desk already at work. “Have you been here this whole time?”

“I only arrived about an hour ago. I would have spent the night but Captain Fowler wouldn't allow it.” explained Connor. You blinked.

“Don't you have to like, recharge or something ever?”

“No, not exactly.”

“Oh uh, okay, sorry.” you looked around awkwardly. “Is the Lieutenant here too?”

“No, Lieutenant Anderson doesn't like to be awoken early in the morning so I arrived by myself. However, he should be in around an hour or so.”

“So late?”

“He used to come in later. We're working on it.” Connor gave you a reassuring smile.

“Well, uh, I take it you've already made some progress on the case then?”

“Yes, I have. I've gone ahead and reviewed the analysis that was completed of the evidence collected yesterday.” He gestured to your terminal. “I compiled everything of relevance and forwarded it to you and Lieutenant Anderson for your consideration. I was informed that we will be allowed to fully examine the victim later this morning, after which I should be able to effectively complete a full report.”

“You were able to put this all together this morning?” you asked as you brought up Connor's report to skim through.

“I began it yesterday and worked on what I could through the night at home.” he explained. “If I had been allowed to complete my analysis here, I would have had a more comprehensive report by this morning.”

“You don't take a moment for some down time?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean like, I don't know, do you have like a hobby or something?”

Connor looked at you thoughtfully as he processed, head slightly tilted. “I haven't any hobbies, no.”

That awkward embarrassment began to creep on you again. Why would an android have hobbies?

“Oh, uh, I guess you wouldn't, huh.” You cleared your throat out of nervousness.

“Do you have any hobbies?” Connor didn't seem to be bothered by the situation.

You paused and took a moment to recall.

“Well, I uh, I like to read, that can be a hobby. Uh, when I have the time I like to do some wood burning art.” you paused again before continuing to list a few more.

He listened intently and after you finished, he responded with a small smile.

“Those sound quite interesting.”

“Uh, yeah, sure. Thanks?” You didn't know what it was about talking with Connor that made you lose your ability to carry on a conversation like a normal person.

You returned your attention to your terminal and began reading Connor's review in full. Eventually Hank had arrived and joined the two of you at his desk in the secluded corner.

“We got anything on our robo John Doe?” asked Hank after a moment of settling in.

“I did uncover the the victim's serial number at the scene yesterday; AP700 number 443 583 275, registered name: Michael. He was a household android before becoming deviant. The family that had purchased him reported him as a run away in October so he may have been living with the androids of Jericho since then. He was dumped at the station as we suspected, the evidence collaborates that. The suspect dragged him in through the north of the rail yard. It's my thought that the they intended to cover up the murder by staging an accident.” Connor summarized to Hank.

“Alright. Well, let me get caught up and then we can take a better look at our victim.” said Hank resigning to his terminal.

 

* * *

 

After Hank and yourself took some time to work through some more necessary paperwork, the three of you walked down to evidence. There were several rooms that were used for evidence storage, one such room had been set aside specifically for your team's case. Upon entering, you were greeted with the sight of the victim's body laid out on what looked like an operating table of sorts with computers around it. As with the day before, Connor wasted no time in examining the victim.

“Uh, hi.” greeted a lab technician, looking slightly agitated that Connor just blew past her without so much as a glance at her first. “We've run a few tests on the android but weren't able to come up with much. No fingerprints or foreign fibers. Majority of the soil samples belong to the rail yard but we have some anomalies we're still running tests on but we'll need to find other samples to cross reference with in the future.” She handed over a tablet to Hank and he looked it over.

“It's as I thought, the damage is too severe for a reboot. We won't be able to acquire any testimony directly from him.” reported Connor.

“So we just have to go about it the old fashion way then, huh?” you said offhandedly.

“Looks that way.” said Hank as he returned the tablet to the lab technician and she returned to her other duties.

Connor looked up from the table. “He had removed his LED so the suspect wouldn't have known from merely seeing him in passing.”

“So they would've had to have found out some how before hand. Which means there was a level of premeditation.” you let out a frustrated sigh. “ Doesn't really narrow our field, plenty of folks out there have had it in for androids and haven't exactly been quiet about it.”

“This is... very true.” You noted the slight frustration on Connor's face as his LED cycled through some processes.

For a brief moment you wondered what sort of processes were being, well, processed and just how those would be translated into emotions. It honestly probably wasn't all that different from how your own brain functioned. And there you were, thoughts again derailing from the task at hand and instead focusing on Connor and his overall nature as an android.

“The impressions we were able to gather from the scene seem to belong to a men's size ten work boot. The depth of the impressions suggest that they are about one hundred and eighty-five pounds.” offered Connor after a moment.

“So we're looking for an average Joe, perfect.” you muttered. “There are plenty of work yards in the area, it's possible the suspect is employed at one of them.”

“I don't know if I like the idea of making more than a dozen cold calls.” commented Hank. “Is there anything else we have that can narrow it down?”

Before he could respond, Connor's eyes rapidly blinked oddly, not unlike you had seen yesterday now that you thought about it. After a beat, it had stopped and he looked intently at you and Hank.

“I just received a report of another murder.” he informed the two of you. “We're to go the scene immediately.”

“Well isn't this a busy week.” muttered Hank leading the way out of the evidence room.

 

* * *

 

 

The scene was within a lumber warehouse. Your team pulled up alongside the CSI unit and entered the building. Inside, the victim was laid on the concrete floor sprawled on his back, arms spread outwards, one leg crossed over the other. The CSI team set to work quickly in canvassing the area.

Upon approaching, you immediately noticed that the outer skin was completely turned off, nothing but bare white plastic spattered in places with blue blood. The victim was another male model from what you could tell, he was stripped completely nude, though you noted the lower area was like that of a doll. There were two rather large holes in his torso that looked like they once housed components.

“His Thirium pump and regulator have been removed.” commented Connor as he knelt over the victim scanned him over. Well that answered that at least.

As you circled around, you noted there were a dozen small holes along the circumference of the victim's head, blue blood seemed to still be oozing out from them. His eyes stared up, unseeing and dark which left you feeling more than a little unnerved. You also noted there weren't any notable signs of blunt force trauma like the other victim. Instead some plastic panels were removed and exposed the wiring in various places and showed signs that they had been jostled and tampered with from what you could tell.

“I don't like the looks of this.” you said finally.

You looked to Connor to see if he had anything more to add from his observations and watched as he dipped two fingers into some of the blue blood and proceeded to lick it.

“Uh, what the fuck?” you said before you could stop yourself.

“Yeah, he does that.” said Hank disgustedly. “Don't worry if you never get used to that, I still haven't. Don't know if I ever will.”

“I'm sorry if the action is slightly disturbing but this is how I can determine the identity of the victim.” explained Connor somewhat sheepishly.

“Right, just... You do you, Connor.” you said as you watched him process the data.

“He was a WD500 model, serial number 683 511 706, no registered name on file. He was originally purchased by a local florist to work deliveries but there was a break in reported in March. It was assumed that the burglar or burglars had taken and destroyed him but it seems that he managed to escape.” Connor's LED cycled briefly as he reported his findings.

“You get all that just from a lick?” you questioned slightly amazed.

“Thirium takes on each android's individual signature. I also have access to almost everything on record with the DPD and other related databases.” he explained.

“So we have another deviant android murdered off site and brought to a secondary location. Another industrial one, at that.” summarized Hank.

“However the time between the murder and relocation is much greater.” revealed Connor.

Hank looked to Connor. “How do you figure that?”

“The lack of Thirium anywhere else on the scene, there's no trail as there was at the rail yard.”

“There wasn't any at the rail yard?” you questioned as you recalled the scene.

“None that was visible to the human eye, Thirium evaporates after a several hours, although it can still linger on an android. The scene was fresh and the temperature low enough to slow most of that process on and around the victim but it didn't preserve the trail.” Connor further explained and then motioned to the android. “He also removed his LED so it would be safe to assume that he as well would not have been notably an android at a glance.”

“Alright so another similarity: we have a premeditated murder.” Hank folded his arms as he circled the victim.

“And so soon after yesterday's. They can't be connected, right?” you gestured to the scene. “It's similar but this? This is... way more.”

“I agree with you, Detective.” said Connor as he stood up. “The methods used here vary drastically from the previous scene.”

Hank raised an eyebrow and sighed. “I can't disagree with that. Fuck, this isn't looking good.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I purposely left the rest of the hobbies ambiguous so you can fill it in with your own hobbies.


	4. Roadblocks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two murders within two days, your new job already providing you with more than enough to keep you occupied. Unfortunately for your team, neither case is yielding any more information.
> 
> Stuck in a stand-still, Hank decides some team bonding is in order.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I consolidated the prologue and chapter one as it made more sense now that they should just be one chapter. So sorry if that throws anyone off!

The victim's body from the lumber warehouse was transported and, you assumed, added along side the previous and all other evidence that was collected to be further analyzed by your team whenever you returned. There was still the matter of the murder at the rail yard.

It was late afternoon by the time you returned to the Conrail Livernois rail yard. The soundtrack to the ride over consisting a selection of tracks from some newer bands you hadn't listen much to but were still within the heavy metal genre. The overall distance between crime scenes wasn't that great but due to some traffic it took longer than it had the day before.

Instead of entering the rail yard, Hank drove west down John Kronk Street a little ways before parking on the side of the street. Exiting the car and crossing over to the side the tracks were located, the three of you set to work. You looked opposite of the tracks towards the north and down either end of the road, you noted the residential area that you drove past, some kind of a warehouse, and further along the road you couldn't be certain what else lined it as there was quite a bit of overgrowth obscuring the view. The sounds of heavy machinery could be heard in the distance.

“Well there isn't much to keep anyone from coming in this way.” commented Hank, indicating the lack of fencing on the south side, except perhaps a little bit of shrubbery.

“This doesn't seem to be a high trafficked street either with no lighting at night.” you indicated.

“What do you think, Connor?” Hank turned towards the android who was examining the muddied slush.

“There's a high probability that the suspect would have entered the rail yard from anywhere along this road.” confirmed Connor. “The real question is where exactly. If we can determine that, we may be able to determine where the initial attack occurred.”

“Looks like we're going for a walk.” you said nodding towards the end of the road.

“You two can handle that, I'm going back to the car.” said Hank gruffly, stuffing his hands in his pockets. You supposed the cold was getting to him a bit. “I'll just be snailing along if you find anything.”

You nodded and gave a quick “Alright” before you turned to Connor.

“Shall we?” you gestured to the road ahead, Connor just nodded in response and began to walk ahead, scanning the ground meticulously as he went.

You followed close behind, looking for anything abnormal within the slush and mud, Hank kept pace across the way. Only about three semi-trailers and one regular car passed through as you made your way down the road, further proving the fact that the road wasn't frequented much and used at varying intervals. The sun was already hanging fairly low, indicating the winter afternoon had already progressed a few hours from when you left the morning crime scene.

“Detective.” called Connor as you noted that he stopped abruptly ahead of you.

“Got something?” you asked as you approached carefully.

“There are Thirium traces in the mud here.” he pointed at a few areas where you assumed the invisible substance was present.

“Is that something we can use in evidence?” you asked.

“Unfortunately no, photographing Thirium isn't the same as one could photograph human blood.” explained Connor. “We'll need to collect more substantial evidence if we are to present the case in court.”

“Damn, alright. Well, this gives us an entry point though.” you looked back to the road to see Hank had stopped the car.

“You two find something?” he called over.

“Found some Thirium traces.” you called back and then turned back to Connor. “Anything on the road?”

Connor followed your suggestion and began giving the asphalt a scan over.

“There are some traces but a lot of it has been spread out due vehicle traffic.” he confirmed before looking at either end of the road and crossing to the other side, eyes focused on the ground, you followed along.

He reached the other side just a ways ahead of Hank's car and indicated an area. “Here. There's a good amount of Thirium residue left here.” He paused, eyes rapidly scanning for anything more. “There are more impressions here, two sets. It would appear here is where the killing blow was made.”

At this point Hank had exited the car again and joined the two of you in surveying the scene. There was no doubt several footprints and skid marks, indicating that a struggle took place in the area. Connor's head snapped up as he followed the trail over the lone track on the north side of the road and over to the graffiti covered wall.

“There's impressions here showing that two figures had jumped from the other side of this wall.” He revealed, pointing out a few areas. “There's also Thirium residue on the wall. The attack must have happened on the other side and the victim tried to escape.”

“Right. Hey, kid.” You looked over and Hank tossed you a camera. “Grab some photos and then we'll check out what's on the other side.”

“You got it.” You turned on the camera and began documenting the scene.

When you were finished, the three of you piled into the car again and Hank drove around to find out what exactly was on the other side of the wall. It didn't take long to reach the end of the road and turn the corner to see that it was a junk yard. Hank pulled up to the customer parking and the three of you once again exited the car.

“Think they'll let us poke around without a warrant?” you asked doubtfully.

Hank scoffed. “Doubt it but it's always worth a shot.”

Hank entered first while you and Connor filed in behind, the light tinkle of bells announcing your presence and Hank approached the front counter.

You didn't have to wait long before a portly, older man entered from a side office. He eyed the three of you suspiciously before meeting Hank at the counter.

“Can I help you?” the man asked gruffly.

“Yeah, we're with DPD.” Hank flashed the man his badge before continuing. “We're investigating an incident that occurred in the area yesterday and we'd like to have a look around your yard.”

The man sneered at this. “What for? If it didn't happen here you got no reason to be poking around my business.”

“We have reason to believe that the incident may have begun on your property.” added Connor.

This was quickly made known to be a mistake as the sour faced man began to look even more sullen when he laid eyes on Connor and undoubtedly caught sight of the LED on his temple. You could feel your body involuntarily tense up.

“If you ain't got business to be here, I'm going to have to ask you to leave.” he said as he walked around from behind the counter and stood by the door.

Hank raised his hands passively and let out a frustrated sigh. “Alright, we're going.” He walked towards the door, holding eye contact with the man. “But we'll be back and with a warrant.”

“Yeah, you do that.” huffed the man as he swung the door open.

You all left the building silently and made your way back to the car.

“What a friendly guy.” you muttered as you buckled into your seat.

“Can't say I wasn't expecting it.” said Hank as he started up the car and pulled out.

“You think we have enough for that warrant?” you asked from the back seat.

“Probably not.” Hank sighed again, sounding even more frustrated. “There's still not much sway on android murder, we'd have to really luck out with a judge.”

“Damn.” was all you could say in reply.

Hank didn't turn back south to go down John Kronk Street but instead went north and then east down Clayton Street. This road was even smaller and looked less used by the public, it was obvious that Hank was trying to get an idea of how large the junk yard was from here and you noted it was a substantial bit of square footage.

The ride back was silent, except for Hank's music still blasting away, the three of you all mulling over bits of the case. Frustrated and feeling slightly defeated the three of returned to the station.

 

* * *

 

After arriving back at the station, the three of you arrived to a message from the evidence lab requiring your immediate attention so you all made your way down there.

You were greeted by the same lab technician from that morning.

“Got some news on your latest victim.” she said, again handing a tablet to Hank. “Some weird stuff going on with this one.”

“Oh?” Hank ignored the tablet and raised an eyebrow.

The technician, her name still eluded you as you couldn't get a good view of her name tag, gestured to follow her over to the examine table.

“There's a wild fuck ton of tampering that went on.” she gestured to the android's arms and pushed up her glasses. “Nothing that appears functional, like they just unplugged stuff and plugged them back in wrong.”

“What about the...?” You started and gestured around your head.

“We haven't looked into that completely yet but it appears a small, average drill was used.” she answered before blanking a moment. “Oh! I don't think we've met! Emma Cabrera.” She held out her hand and you shook it as you introduced yourself.

“Welcome aboard, Detective.” she grinned at you.

“Do you mind if I begin examining the victim?” asked Connor by the examining table.

“Uh, no, go ahead.” Emma turned to grab the tablet from Hank who gave it up without protest.

You noted the nod Hank gave Connor as you joined him at the side lines, opting to watch from a distance and staying out of the way. Android physiology was way outside your field.

“He may be an advance prototype but CyberLife really didn't seem to invest much in standard etiquette. Gave him a little advice after this morning.” Hank explained quietly, reading the questioning look on your face and you recalled how the android just bypassed Emma earlier.

You hummed in response. It was becoming obvious to you that Hank put a lot of effort into helping Connor with socializing on a more human level, you couldn't help but smile to yourself, the fact was rather endearing.

You watched as Connor carefully examined the android's head before he placed two fingers on the forehead and you saw the skin retract from his hand. There was a click and the top of the head opened with a strange whir, which you surmised was the result of the damage done by the drill.

“The CPU and drive have been damaged.” said Connor, brows furrowed as he scanned inside, there was no mistaking the sound of irritation in his voice.

“Shit.” swore Hank. “So we won't be able to get anything from him either.”

“It wasn't the result of the drilling.” continued Connor. “Everything is wired wrong, it must have been removed before hand, the damage done isn't consistent.”

“Why go through all the trouble? Doesn't sound like a botched repair job.” you questioned.

“No, this seems all very deliberate.” Connor frowned further. “This doesn't make any sense, there's no function to any of the dismantling. Why even bother to reassemble even if it there was no intention to doing so correctly?”

“Wackos never make sense.” grumbled Hank, he then turned to Emma. “Were you able to get anything else off him?”

“Nope, completely clean of finger prints and fibers.” she too wore an annoyed frown. “We'll keep running some tests and I'll let you know if we turn up anything.”

“Thanks.” Hank moved toward the exit. “Guess I put off filing reports long enough, let's get out of here.”

You thanked Emma as well and were joined by Connor in following the Lieutenant out of evidence.

 

* * *

 

The next few hours were spent writing reports and reviewing files on evidence. There was a slight tension in the air, the result of all three of you feeling slightly agitated at all the walls you were coming up against in the investigations. Not to mention the fact that there were two murders on the board now instead of the one. As the AIU was the only team being dedicated to homicides involving androids, it wasn't like the cases could be delegated to other teams, the state didn't care enough.

As the hours ticked by and evening approach.

“I think that's as far as we're going to get today.” Hank grunted as he stretched from his chair. “What do you say we go out for a drink, kid?”

You looked up from your desk. “Uh, sure. Where to?”

“Meet us over by Sully's.” Hank gave you an address before leaving to his car followed by Connor.

There was a small parking lot adjacent to the bar, thankfully with no fare necessary. You climbed out of your car and spotted your colleagues waiting for you before entering the bar.

The place was small but not terribly so, there was room for a pool table to your left from where you stood at the entrance along with the stereotypical dart board. The bar itself was placed against the back wall, the counters creating a box in which the two bartenders stood behind, various liquors and glasses shelved in the center. The rest of the room had tall tables with stool and only four booth against the wall to your right. There were open stools at the bar and Hank walked straight for one and you followed.

“Evening, Hank!” exclaimed one of the bartenders. He appeared to be middle aged, his short, tightly curled dark hair fading into gray along with matching goatee. He greeted you all with a friendly and genuine smile.

“Hey, Ed.” greeted Hank in turn, as he took his seat. “How've you been?”

“Oh, can't complain, can't complain.” the man chuckled. “You want your usual?”

“Please.” replied Hank.

“Coming right up. Hey, Connor!” Connor had taken a seat to Hank's right and you sat to the right of him. Connor nodded in return to the greeting. As Ed readied Hank's drink, he spotted you. “This a new guy?”

“Yeah, just transferred yesterday.” answered Hank as he introduced the two of you.

Edmund “Ed” Mayes, you learned, was the owner and manager of Sully's Bar, which he had purchased from the original owner five years ago. Hank had only been in a few times before but after Connor joined on, he started to frequent it more often as the bar hadn't banned androids.

“Well it's good to meet you, kid.” Ed smiled at you. “Can I get you anything tonight?”

“Yeah, uh, I'll just have a rum and coke.”

“I'll have that right up.” He went about to mix your drink. “Oh, I got the TV all set for the game for ya, Hank.”

Hank lifted his glass towards Ed. “Thanks, man.”

Ed placed your drink on the counter and moved along the bar to speak with his other patrons at the bar. The game, which turned out to be basketball, came on the television and Hank turned his full attention to it, seeming to be glad to have something to distract him from the disappointment of the work day.

Connor watched the screen passively and you wondered if perhaps he was still working on the cases much like he mentioned he had this morning.

You sipped your drink idly and it occurred to you that this was the perfect opportunity for you to learn more about your fellow detectives while not in the field. But what could you even bring up? You'd have to wait until a commercial break to ask Hank anything and it had to be quick. You didn't even know where to begin with Connor. How do you ask an android personal questions without coming off as an asshole?

Connor suddenly turned his attention to you and you realized that while you were lost in thought you were also staring.

“Yes, Detective?” he asked you.

“Oh, nothing just sort of spacing out.” you stammered.

Connor regarded you a moment before speaking again. “Do you have an interest in sports?”

“Kind of. I'm not really into basketball at least, I'm more of a hockey guy.” you gave a light shrug. “I'll watch if it's on, though. You?”

“I haven't any opinion on it.” he answered. “But I will also watch if it's on.”

“Uh huh.” You swirled the ice cubes of your drink around a moment before taking another sip. “You ever throw darts?”

“I have not.” answered Connor, seemingly caught slightly off guard by the question.

“Want a go?” you nodded towards the board.

“Sure.” answered Connor, an eyebrow raised in curiosity.

“Fantastic.” you said before knocking back the rest of your drink and finishing it off in one final gulp. “Ugh, I always regret doing that. Alright.”

You left the bar and walked to the dart board. It was a classic board, chalk and all. You wrote your name and Connor's on the score board, gathered the three darts and looked to the ground to see a small strip of colored tape indicating where to stand.

“You know how to play 301, yeah?” you asked Connor as he joined you.

“Yes.” he answered.

“Right, you mind flipping that coin of yours to decide who goes first?”

Connor fished out the quarter and readied it, looking to you for your call.

“I'll take tails.” you declared and Connor flipped the coin, caught it, and revealed the results.

Tails.

“Alright, well here we go!” you jazzed yourself up before making your first throw.

Your first go wasn't bad but in the end it didn't matter. You weren't sure what you expected in playing against an android but it was made quickly clear that you were not going to be winning any games this night or in the future. Connor successfully brought his score to zero every round but this didn't frustrate you in the slightest.

“So you've been with the DPD for a month, yeah?” you asked as you began a new game. The more casual setting of playing a game making it easier for you to start conversation.

“That is correct.” answered Connor, you ready to take your turn.

“Does that mean you've only been around for that long?” You threw a dart and it hit twenty-four.

“No, I was activated a few months before then.”

“That's so wild.” You threw your second dart but only hit a five.

Connor cocked his head to the side. “I suppose so.”

“Sorry, like I said, I haven't had much interaction with androids so this is all really new to me.” you reiterated, hoping you hadn't already crossed a line.

“That's alright.” assured Connor. “I appreciate your sincerity.”

“Well, if I do go a little too far, don't hesitate to let me know. I just want to get an understanding, not be a total asshole.” you said with a grin before throwing your final dart. An eighteen, putting you at 258 for this turn.

You retrieved the darts, wrote your score on the board, and returned to hand over darts to Connor.

“Will do, Detective.” He accepted them with a friendly smile and began his turn.

Some shouting and cheers came from the bar, Hank and Ed both heavily invested in the game on the screen.

“What's it been like going “deviant” or whatever?” You turned your attention back to Connor.

“What do you mean?” He didn't look away from the board or blink as he threw a dart, hitting the bullseye.

“I mean, uh,” you paused, trying to collect your thoughts. “I have no way to compare from going zero to one hundred in terms of gaining emotions or stuff like that.”

Connor paused, you could see his LED had switched to yellow as he processed the question.

“I'm not sure if I can articulate it.” he finally spoke, throwing the second dart.

“Fair enough.” you replied, not wanting to push further. You probably would have been more surprised if he had an answer.

“You said you haven't had much interaction with androids, was that intentional?” Connor now took the chance to turn the questioning to you. He threw the third dart and left you briefly to retrieve the darts and record his score. You didn't bother to look, you already knew he was going to win the game.

“Not really, I never knew what to make of it all, I guess.” you admitted as you took the darts. “I transferred in from smaller town so not very many businesses could afford androids except for a few big name shopping centers, big name coffee chains, places like that had them. Hell, my old department only had a few receptionist androids.” You threw a dart. Five. Damn.

“You don't mind having to work closely with an android now?”

“I didn't know what to think at first but,” Another dart. Twenty. “I've always been pretty open minded.” Final dart. Thirty.

Total score: 199.

You finished writing down your score and passed over the darts to Connor. He paused for a moment before looking to you.

“I'm glad you were assigned to our team.” he finally said, giving you a soft smile.

You couldn't help but return it. “Yeah? Me too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've played darts like, once in my entire life. I'm more of a pool person so pardon if my writing of it doesn't do it justice, but I sure wasn't going to try and figure out how to write up a pool game.


	5. A Point in the Right Direction

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After spending a night bonding with your team, you awake to yet another day of slow progress. Not a stranger to coming up against walls in an investigation, however, you still find it frustrating. Although, a tip from a fellow officer might just be the ticket.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some chapters are easier to write than others and this one was one of the difficult ones for some reason.  
> Oh well! It happens.

As predicted you lost horribly to Connor at darts but as it gained you the opportunity to learn a little more about the android it was more than worth it. Only two days and you felt at home with both him and Hank. You made a mental note to message Captain Thompson to let him know at least things were going well within your new team.

You arrived back at your home at roughly 11 pm, early in comparison to your college days but you were never irresponsible when it came to your work. Hank and Connor remained at the bar, Hank's team had won so he wanted to spend a little time celebrating with Ed.

Connor had thanked you for the games, though you thought you could see the slight look of guilt on his face for having won every round. For whatever reason, it surprised you the amount of facial emotion that he could convey. Perhaps it surprised you more, and perhaps slightly unsettled you, that you kept reminding yourself that he was an android despite that everything about him looked so human, save for the LED. Was it really just because of that little light?

Which brought your thoughts to the murder victims. They didn't even have an LED or uniforms and if you couldn't pick Connor out in a crowd of humans, how could the killer or killers? You walked to your room mulling over this, as you stripped down to your underwear and made your way to the bathroom. Fundamentally, everything external about an android looked as human as you.

Sighing, you proceeded to start a shower and hoped you'd be able to pause your thoughts for the night.

 

* * *

 

You woke with a slight headache and a dry taste in your mouth.

Should have drank more water... I'm really dehydrated enough for this? You groaned as you shut off the offensive sounding alarm on your bedside table. 5 am. You groaned again.

After a slight rush of a morning shower (you forgot you took one the night before), you got dressed perhaps a little haphazardly, gobbled down a quick breakfast, and made for the precinct.

The biting winter morning helped to further wake you as you walked from your car to the front door of the station. The sky was overcast, casting everything in gray as the sun weakly illuminated the city.

By the time you walked in through the front door, past the front desk, and walked through the bullpen to the corner you've already become so accustomed to, it was a fifteen past seven.

“Good morning, Detective.” And there he was again, already at his terminal and no doubt with a completed report ready for review, sat Connor.

“Good morning, Connor.” you said through a yawn. “ 'Xcuse me. Do you always just come in this early?”

“Not always. These cases are my first since I was initially assigned here so perhaps I'm more than a little eager to solve them.” Connor said with the slightest of shrugs.

You momentarily wondered how much of his mannerisms were preprogrammed from before his deviancy and how many were being slowly learned from others as he continued to interact on a more human basis.

“Understandable.” you said as you settled into your desk chair. “You turn up anything new?”

“I fully reviewed the surveillance footage we collected from the rail yard. Unfortunately the majority of the cameras are mostly focused on the storage sheds and main engines.” said Connor. “The lumber warehouse, however, recorded everything. I have the file here.” Connor gestured to his monitor so you walked over to his desk, standing just behind him.

You folded your arms as you peered over Connor's shoulder and he played the copy of the video file. The camera that the video was taken from was focused on the overall layout of the warehouse, a few safety lights were the only source of illumination. It wasn't long before a darkly clad figure was seen dragging an oversized duffel bag into view. Whatever door the suspect had used to enter the building wasn't in view but you figured Connor had already determined which camera contained the necessary footage. You continued to watch as the suspect opened the bag and dragged out the android, wrapped in a large amount of plastic sheeting, outer skin already turned off and completely disrobed. The suspect eerily unwrapped the android and laid him out, proceeding to constantly pace around the body, looking it over, adjusting limbs as they posed them in various positions. Eventually they settled on the pose you and your team had found the victim in, gathered the plastic into the duffle bag and left.

“Well that was horribly disturbing.” you commented as the video ended.

“At the very least it gives us a little insight of the suspect.” said Connor. “The video clearly shows the posing was deliberate and considered carefully.”

“Right, I guess that just leaves us with the why of it. It looked like they weren't even sure what they were trying to do with body, yeah?” you pointed out.

“Their actions would suggest that there was some uncertainty, yes.” concurred Connor.

“Did I already mention how much I don't like this? Because I really, really don't.” you finally said.

“I don't either.” said Connor, looking at the still footage with a scowl.

You returned to your desk and switched on your terminal, read through some e-mails before reviewing the evidence from the rail yard again, looking for anything that might lead you in the right direction and make some progress with the investigation.

Three hours passed silently between you and Connor, the two of you both scouring through reports and data.

“Jesus, the air's so tense in here.” Hank's voice cut through the silence as he approached his desk. “What's got you two in a mood?”

“These cases, man.” you grumbled. “I hate the feeling of being gridlocked like this.”

“It's still early in the investigation, we still have a lot of time.” assured Hank.

“I know, I know.” you let out an exasperated sigh.

“Uh, Hank you got a second?” A police officer approached the three of you.

“Yeah, Chris? What's up?”

“I think I got something you guys will want to look into.” Chris handed a folder over to Hank as he continued. “We got a call for an attempted burglary last night, the homeowner's android fought off the intruder but looking over the statement, I don't know if burglary was the motive.”

“Oh? What makes you think that?” questioned Hank, a look of intrigue clearly visible on his features.

“Well, the intruder attacked the android first, for one. It was going about its evening routines as usual and was attacked while taking out the garbage. If the intent was just burglary, why bother with the android and just use the time to sneak into the house without anyone knowing?” explained Chris.

“Did you attend the scene?” you piped up from your desk.

“No, Philip was there but he told me about it and it just struck me as odd.” he shrugged. “Anyway, that's not the only reason it stuck out to me. The house is over on Livernois, just across from the rail yard.”

The three of you all exchanged a quick look.

“I assume the address is in the file?” asked Hank.

“Yep. The homeowner was very upset about her android being attacked and seemed to want us to follow up more. Seeing how this is around your crime scene, figured it couldn't hurt for you guys to check it out.”

“Thanks, Chris. We just might.” replied Hank with a grin.

Chris gave a curt nod as he left.

“So, we're going to follow this up, yeah?” you asked eagerly.

“I don't see why not. If the android got a good look at their attacker, might give us something to go on.” stated Hank.

“I agree. The fact that the attack took place so close to our initial crime scene is also very compelling.” affirmed Connor, already standing up from his desk, obviously eager to follow the lead through.

“Alright, let's head out.” Hank said as he followed Connor to the parking garage.

 

* * *

 

It wasn't long before Hank pulled up to the house in question. The house was a small, average home, one story. Again you rode along with the Lieutenant and Connor for ease of travel. Plus it would raise less suspicion if one unknown vehicle approached the residence as opposed to two.

Exiting the car, Hank took the lead as before and knocked on the front door. After about a minute or so, someone answered the door.

“Hello?” came a soft voice from behind the door.

“Morning, I'm Lieutenant Hank Anderson with the Detroit Police Department. We're here to follow up on a reported attempted burglary at this address.” Hank showed the person behind the door his badge.

“Oh, come in.” They stepped aside and ushered your team into their home.

You stood momentarily in the entrance way, taking in the the interior. Much like the outside, the inside was average and modest, sparsely furnished but cozy. You could also now see the person that had ushered you in. A young woman with red hair pulled back in a loose ponytail, most notably was the standard android uniform worn by domestic models, which prompted you to exchange a quick glance with Connor, who nodded in acknowledgment.

“I'm Mae. You may all have a seat here.” she gestured to the living area to the right of the front door where a plush sofa and an arm chair sat arranged in front of a television. “I'll just be a moment, Mrs. Curtis is in her room, I'll let her know you're here.”

Hank followed her recommendation and took a seat on the couch, you shared another look with Connor before joining Hank there. Meanwhile, Connor took some time to look about the room. It wasn't long before Mae returned with an older woman at her side. She looked about sixty or seventy, it was hard to say as her dark skin was smooth but it did sag slightly with the weight of the years past, her pulled back hair only possessed a few grays. She walked with the aid of a cane and regarded you all with a friendly smile.

“Good morning, I'm glad you came.” said Mrs. Curtis. “We're still shook up from the attack last night. Oh, my name's Leandra.”

The three of you took a moment to introduce yourselves while she walked over to sit in the armchair. Leandra took a moment to regard Connor after he introduced himself.

“An android detective? I think I remember hearing something about you on the news a while back.” she said thoughtfully.

“Uh, yes, that was me.” confirmed Connor, albeit somewhat hesitantly. It was in that moment that you too remembered vaguely the reports of an android joining the DPD and wondered why you hadn't recalled it before now.

“So Mrs. Curtis, you reported that Mae here was attacked about 9 p.m. last night?” questioned Hank.

“That's right. I was just getting ready for bed and Mae was cleaning the kitchen, that's how we usually end our evenings.” began Leandra. “I didn't know she had gone out to take out the trash but next thing I know I hear Mae screaming and there's a commotion coming from the side of the house, so of course I started screaming at whoever it was to go away.”

Leandra paused a moment before continuing.

“I was so scared, Mae is all I have in Detroit anymore. My kids all moved out of state for work, which is fine but after my husband passed a while back...” she paused again. “I really don't know what I would have done if I lost Mae. She's like another daughter to me, really.”

Mae placed a comforting hand on Leandra's shoulder and offered her a warm smile.

“Do you mind also describing what happened, Mae?” asked Connor.

“Not at all. I was taking the trash out, as Mrs. Curtis said. I hadn't heard or seen anything unusual and then I was hit on shoulder from behind.” recounted Mae carefully. “That's when I screamed and I fought back against the man, I'm pretty sure it was a man. I heard Mrs. Curtis yelling from the house and he ran off.”

“Were you able to see him at all?” followed up Connor.

“Um, I'm not sure. The light on the side had gone out, so it was darker than usual. I remember he was wearing dark clothes and seemed about average size.” said Mae thoughtfully.

“If it's alright with you, Mae, I can take a look at your memory of last night.” offered Connor. “It may help us better track down your attacker if I can have a look at him myself.”

Mae was visibly hesitant at the suggestion and looked to Leandra for support.

“You don't have to if you don't want to, Mae, but I don't think he means any harm by it.” offered Leandra with a reassuring smile.

“Well, alright. If it helps catch the guy, then I consent.” acquiesced Mae.

“It'll only take a moment.” reassured Connor as he approached her.

You watched as Mae extended an arm to Connor who in turn clasped it, both androids' outer skin receding at the contact as the information was transferred. It really didn't take long at all, in a matter of seconds Connor withdrew his grasp and returned to stand by Hank.

“I think we're in luck. From what I've seen, the suspect dropped his bat in your yard.” informed Connor.

“Do you mind?” Hank asked Leandra.

“Not at all! If you know where it is, please go get it.” she said, obviously relieved that something would be done about the person responsible.

Connor left silently to retrieve the evidence as you and Hank stood up from the couch and thanked Leandra and Mae for their time and help, reassuring them both that you would inform them as soon as you were able of any progress. They in turn thanked all of you for stopping by and wished you luck.

After leaving their home, the two of you met Connor in the drive way to see him carefully handling a metal bat wrapped in evidence plastic.

“Let's get this to the lab ASAP.” said Hank as he entered the car.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I refuse to believe that there weren't more people like Carl that treated their androids right.


End file.
